Pages

Thursday, December 6, 2012

Release Day! CENTER STAGE by Bernadette Marie

Today is launch day for book 4 in the Keller Family series, CENTER STAGE! Already on the bestsellers list, this book follows the eldest Keller sibling, Arianna and her relationship with the ever handsome John Forrester.

John Forrester is a simple man whose
never needed more than his work, his truck, and a small apartment with his flat
screen TV. After a bad breakup with his ex-wife John swore he’d never get
married again and has done his best to keep to himself. But one woman always
creeps into his mind—Arianna Keller.

Arianna Keller had an amazing
career, center stage on Broadway. However, her run in New York is over and
circumstances have forced her back home to Nashville, Tennessee.

The relationship John and Arianna have
forged over the years as friends has always had a romantic spark, which has
been ignored. Now they are working together to restore an old theater and their
desire for each other can no longer be denied.

It’s only a matter of time before
sparks ignite into a passionate fire. But Arianna is keeping a secret which
threatens to destroy more than her relationship with John—it threatens the
lives of the entire Keller family.

Chapter One

Arianna pushed down on the suitcase and forced
the zipper to close. The rest of her apartment was packed and ready for movers,
but she’d need all her clothes before her belongings arrived in Tennessee.

She looked around her small, New York
apartment. It had been a good home to her for the past decade. She’d
accomplished everything she’d wanted. When she’d moved there, it was to try her
hand on the stages of Manhattan. She’d played in some dives and had worked her
way up to leads on Broadway. She had a few commercials to her credit and had
graced a few TV shows as an extra, but her love was still on stage. But now it
was time to go home, back where her family was. Something would come together
for her there. It always did.

Arianna looked at her watch. She had barely
enough time to get to the airport. If there were any accidents backing up
traffic, she’d miss her flight.

Her brother-in-law, Zach, had called and said
her sister Regan had gone into labor with the couple’s second baby. She figured
she’d arrive just in time to get to hold the bundle of joy. Then in a few more
weeks, her brother, Curtis, and his fiancée, Simone, would have their first
child. She knew moving back to Tennessee was right, and getting to spoil new
nieces and nephews was reason enough to be closer to home.

The flight had been miserable. Leaving New York
in a January snowstorm always meant delays and aggravation. It was almost eight
o’clock at night by the time the flight landed two hours late. Carlos would be
livid if he’d been waiting at the airport the entire time.

She made it to baggage claim, retrieved her two
pieces of luggage, and then scanned the area for her brother. There was no sign
of him, or any member of her family, anywhere.

“I thought I’d missed you,” the familiar voice
behind her said.

She spun quickly to find John Forrester, Zach’s
most trusted building foreman, standing there.

“Missed me? Were you looking for me?”

“I have been sent to pick you up. Carlos and
Madeline ended up with Tyler for the night.”

Arianna narrowed her stare on him when he’d
commented about her nephew. “I thought Mom was watching him while the baby was
born.”

“Well, it seems as though your family is going
to grow quite a bit tonight. Regan is still in labor, and Curtis just took
Simone in. She’s having her baby today, too.”

Arianna gasped. “Simone isn’t due for two more
weeks.”

“Babies come when babies want to, and Emily
thought she’d better be there for Simone.” He picked up her suitcases, one in
each hand. “C’mon, my truck isn’t too far.”

Who would have thought she’d get to be there
for the birth of both babies in one night. God had blessed the Keller family—that
was for sure. Carlos and Madeline’s kids were teenagers, and in the next few
years, they would be off on adventures of their own. Eduardo, their eldest, was
already working for Zach after school. Christian, their second son, was an
all-star athlete—baseball, she thought. And Clara, well, Clara was a girl after
her own heart. She was an accomplished musician on the acoustic guitar. And,
boy, could that girl sing.

Regan and Zach’s son, Tyler, was as anxious as
any sixteen-month-old child could be for a new sibling. But Arianna figured
he’d need the most spoiling from her to make everything just right.

As for her, she’d never wanted children. It
just hadn’t been in her plans. Her career had always been more important. She
came and went as she wanted, carried on in any fashion she saw fit, and, of
course, traveled the world.

But now Nashville, Tennessee called her back
home. Perhaps she could share her talent with the world in some other way.

John led her to his truck in the adjoining
parking lot. She was comfortable with John, she thought, as she walked behind
him. They had been each other’s dates to both of Carlos’s weddings last year,
and they had hit it off, as friends of course. They might have hit it off more,
but he was very conscious of their age difference, even though she wasn’t
worried about the thirteen years between them. His ex-wife had burned him badly
ten years ago, and it was clear he didn’t trust any woman.

Not that she’d been looking for a man, but she
often thought if John hadn’t been so worried about everything, they might have
had something. As it was, they could keep each other’s company comfortably.
Coming home with all her brothers and her sister being married, that might just
be what she needed—someone to keep her company.

John’s truck was probably one of the most beat
up pickup trucks she’d ever had the displeasure of riding in, and she’d been
born and raised in Tennessee—she knew bad pickup trucks. But that was John’s
character. If it still worked, there was no need to replace it.

He backed out of the parking lot and headed
toward the highway. Also common with John, he didn’t have much to say unless you
started the conversation.

“So, how is the construction business?” she
asked.

“Zach keeps me busy. That’s for sure.”

“I’ll bet. Do you think he’ll take some time
off after the baby is born?”

John laughed. “Sure he will. He will work from
his office at home.”

Arianna followed suit and laughed too. That
sounded like her brother-in-law.

She watched as John merged lanes. His tanned
skin showed the many years that he’d worked in the elements. The deep lines
around his eyes never made him look old, she thought, only distinguished. Arianna
liked her men distinguished. Age on a man had never bothered her. Oh, if her
parents knew about some of the men she’d dated in New York, they certainly
might have had an opinion on the matter.

She must be feeling the pang of needing someone
to connect with, she decided, because the thought of running her fingers
through John’s salt and pepper shaded hair was almost irresistible. But she
denied herself the pleasure. He probably wouldn’t take too kindly to the
lunatic sister-in-law of his boss making a move on him.

The long flight and drive out to the hospital
must have worn her out more than she’d thought. She woke to John’s hand on her
arm.

“We’re here. If you hurry, you might not miss
the show.”

She rubbed her eyes. “Aren’t you coming in?”

“Not my place to be. But I’ll drop your bags
off for you. I assume you’re staying at your place?”

She nodded. One of the perks of keeping your
house when you moved away, especially if you knew you’d be back. “Yes. Of
course.”

“That was a sound business decision to keep the
house and rent it out. Benson, Benson, and Hart keep good care of it.”

“I wouldn’t expect anything different. I know I
have a renter in the basement, too. Hope they don’t make too much noise. I’m a
day sleeper.”

John smiled. “Oh, he’s a good guy. He won’t
bother you.”

Arianna nodded and looked up at the hospital
where her brother worked as an emergency room doctor. “Guess I’d better go meet
the newest members of this crazy family.” She slid across the seat and placed a
kiss on John’s unshaven cheek. “Thanks for the ride. I’ll take you out for
pizza and a beer.”

“Never could turn down a woman who offered up
pizza and beer.”

She opened the door and climbed out. He was
just her kind of man.

The waiting room was full of Kellers, including
Carlos and Madeline, who held a sleeping Tyler.

Carlos stood and greeted her with a hug when
she walked into the room. “I thought you were babysitting him so he didn’t have
to hang out here.”

“C’mon, what’s better than meeting your baby
brother or sister in the middle of the night and knowing this is the kid you
get to beat on for the rest of your life?”

Arianna laughed as Clara rushed over and hugged
her. “Auntie, I have a new song for you. I wrote it myself.”

“And I bet it’s the best song ever.”

Arianna pulled her niece to her side. This was
just what she’d needed—her family.

John opened the door to Arianna’s house. He
supposed he’d have to relinquish his key now that she was home. He shut the
door and carried her bags to the bedroom at the top of the stairs. He didn’t
open the door. He knew it was empty, but still, it was her bedroom.

The house was dark and quiet; he’d miss that
too. There hadn’t been a renter upstairs for months; he’d had the house to
himself. Oh, he kept to himself downstairs in the little apartment in the
basement, but he’d enjoyed using the front door access and the kitchen from
time to time. There was a grill on the back porch, which offered the perfect
view of the sunset. He was sure Arianna wouldn’t mind him cooking a steak or
two for her, just for access to the porch.

John grabbed a beer from the refrigerator as he
passed through the kitchen. He figured he’d better get his plugged in
downstairs. It had been a saver on electricity since the one he had in his kitchen
was old, and Arianna’s kept the beer colder.

He started down the stairs to his little
apartment. The door locked from her side, which kept the renters out of the
house. He’d taken liberty with that since the house was empty, but certainly he
wouldn’t disrespect that rule when she came back home.

His small apartment was just the right size. He
was a simple man who didn’t need much—and who didn’t have much since his
ex-wife took everything he’d ever had. Ten years after she’d left him for
another man, he still wondered what he’d ever seen in her. Well, he’d never
make that mistake again. Women just weren’t worth it. Most women, he corrected
himself. His mind had been preoccupied with one woman in particular for months.
And now he faced the dilemma of knowing she’d be living only feet from him.

The last thing he wanted was a
relationship—platonic or just sexual. Relationships had never brought him
anything but grief.

John sat down on his Lazy Boy recliner and
turned on his big screen, flat panel TV. A man had to have his luxuries. He
pulled from his imported beer and thought life was good.

But only a moment later, his mind wandered to
Arianna. With her hair piled atop her head, her eyes dark from lack of sleep,
and her ripped jeans, she’d still stirred him up more than he’d have liked.

Beer and pizza sounded like a great idea, but
he wouldn’t take her up on the offer until he knew they’d cemented their
relationship as landlord/renter and friends—only friends.